Advanced Returns Management: Customer Returns

1. Advanced Returns Management: Customer Returns SAP Best Practices for Retail

2. Advanced Returns Management – Rough Process Flow for Customer Returns Returns Overview Returns Order Customer Refund Article Inspection Logistical Follow-Up Returns Delivery Billing • Returns Order – Trigger the customer returns process in SAP ERP • Returns Delivery – Transport article from customer to a company‘s location • Article Inspection – Find out the status of the returned articles as the basis for further logistical steps and the financial settlement with the customer • Logistical Follow-Up – Move the returned articles to the final destination • Customer Refund – Determine the refund amount that the customer is to receive for returned articles • Billing – Payout the refund to the customer using credit memos • Returns Overview – Monitor the customer returns process

3. Purpose, Benefits, and Key Process StepsAdvanced Notice • Purpose • This scenario describes advanced customer order returns processing with automatic creation of follow-up documents. The customer contacts his local branch or distribution center and informs the internal sales representative that he wants to return some goods that are still at the customer site. The sales representative creates a returns order to initiate the return of articles to one of the company’s locations The goods are shipped back and a return delivery is created. A credit memo is created from the billing run, and posted to the customers account. • Benefits • Full integration of advanced returns management • Customer returns are processed according to sales order reference to the original billing document • Credit memo is created and posted to customers account • Advanced Returns Monitor as central tool to trigger and track processes • Automatic Creation of follow-up documents • Key Process Steps • Creation of returns order • Creation ofreturns delivery • Perform article inspection in the warehouse • Define logistical follow-up decisions and customer refund determination • Creation of credit memo request and credit memo • Monitor customer returns process

4. Purpose, Benefits, and Key Process StepsCustomer at the Counter • Purpose • In this scenario, you have already received the article when you create the returns order to trigger he customer returns process. The customer has either returned the goods to the counter directly. An example of the later scenario would be when the customer gives the goods that he wants to return to your associates when they are at the customer site for a normal delivery. • Benefits • Full integration of advanced sales order returns • Customer returns are processed according to sales order reference to the original billing document • Capture of inspection and follow-up decision within the returns order • Credit memo is created and posted to customers account • Advanced returns Monitor as central toll to trigger and track processes • Automatic creation of follow-up documents • Key Process Steps • Create Returns Order • Capture inspection and follow-up decision within the returns order • Create Returns Delivery • Automatic creation of follow-up documents

5. Required SAP Applications and Company Roles • Required SAP Applications • SAP SAP enhancement package 5 for SAP ERP 6.0 • Company Roles • Sales Administrator • Billing Administrator • Sales Billing • Warehouse Clerk

6. Detailed Process Description Customer Returns – Advanced Notice • Customer Returns – Advanced Notice • The customer contacts his local branch or distribution center and informs the internal sales representative that he wants to return some goods that are still at the customer site. • The scenario starts with the creation of a returns order, which references to the original billing document for the goods. • After the articles have arrived in the company's location, a warehouse worker, who is the inspector, performs the article inspection as a basis for further logistical steps of the returned articles and the financial settlement with the customer • The returned article is inspected. A usage decision is made and subsequently either returned to stock, scrapped, or returned to the vendor. • When the inspector confirms the logistical follow-up activities in this transaction, the system creates the logistical follow-up documents automatically. • After the completion of the logistical activities, the internal sales representative or a specialist in the role of a returns manager defines the refund for the customer using the new Customer Refund Determination transaction.

7. Detailed Process Description Customer Returns – Customer at the counter • Customer Returns – Customer at the counter with article inspection • In this scenario, you have already received the articles when you create the returns order to trigger he customer returns process. • The goods are already arrived at the DC or the customer is at the counter. The sales representative creates a returns order while the customer is at the counter and hands over the articles. • You select Receive into Plant as the follow-up activity, but you can also specify Ship to Other Plant, Ship to Vendor or Ship to Vendor via Other Plant, if you already know that the returned material will not remain at the initial location. • You also enter results of an article inspection of the returned article as basis for further logistical steps and the financial settlement with the customer. • The system creates the logistical follow-up documents automatically based on settings for logistical follow-up activities when you save the returns order. • The credit is posted to customer account. • As optional step you can monitor the whole returns process in the different process phases by using the new Returns OverviewforCustomer Returns transaction.

8. Process Flow Diagram Advanced Returns Management – Customer Returns Event Customer returns goods Advanced notice Customer returns goods Customer at the counter Sales Administration Create returns order Print order confirmation Display returns overview for customer returns Create Customer Return Order Display Returns Overview Warehouse Clerk Perform Article Inspection in the Warehouse Post Goods Receipt Perform article inspection Sales Billing / Sales Person Determine Customer Refund and Create Credit Memo Request (CMR) Determine Customer Refund and Create Credit Memo Request (CMR) Display returns overview for customer returns Display Returns Overview Follow-up processes Billing of credit memo request Billing Administrator Billing of CMR

9. Diagram Connection Legend <Function> Hardcopy / Document External to SAP Financial Actuals Business Activity / Event Budget Planning Unit Process Manual Process Process Reference Existing Version / Data Sub-Process Reference Process Decision System Pass/Fail Decision